Ram23

Did you purposefully or coincidentally post that underneath an article from the New York Times whining about sales reps in clothing stores? Hell, I’d much rather have links to blogs than whiny editorials like that! It’s one thing to just link to outside bloggers who might be whining and complaining, but for the journalists employed by the paper to be doing it? Annoying.

Not really, in fact it's a pretty hotly debated subject amongst many. The goal may be a no-brainier, the methodology is highly debatable, seeing as how I was just debating it in previous posts.

On Spring Grove adjacent to Queensgate Yard in the middle of Camp Washington: Google Map

I always find Flushing to have the most beautiful women, but maybe that's just a personal preference ;) I will say that the proportion of attractive females to males is astounding in NYC, despite what David's pictures might show!!

The simplest, most obvious solution is most often the best solution. However, it’s never the one the government takes, for some reason. We agree that current codes across the country, Cincinnati in particular, are problematic and hinder development. The solution is to make code less restrictive. FBC does that in one sense, but what it also does is add even more restrictions. It might be easier to navigate, which is a positive change, but it hinders the natural development of cities for the sake of shaping urban form based upon the preconceived notions of a handful of urban designers. In doing so, it regulates creative freedom of designers and architects in the future more so than the existing code. My belief is that less codes = better urban form. OTR developed very nicely a century ago without them.

Step in the wrong direction.. zoning codes are already excessively restrictive and have led to the segregation of uses that we have today. Adding complexity and regulation to an already overly complex and regulated system is just asking for more problems. What the city/county should be doing to be truly on the leading edge is become much more liberal in the conditional use permitting process, while simultaneously chopping away chunks of the zoning code that have caused many of the problems form-based codes are attempting to forcibly fix. Form based codes lead to some ugly, sterile developments that have been popping up all over the place recently. The Utopian undertones of the entire concept are also striking, but that’s a discussion for elsewhere. What should be occurring is the relaxation of codes so that cities can develop naturally.

^ He explained the HUD issue and had me thinking 3CDC was in trouble for forgetting to get the prepayment of the mortgage approved. He builds it up, but then says HUD approved it. SO really it’s a done deal. Again, this lawsuit has no tooth to it. Everything about the process was done by-the-book.

Strange, I'm not sure about Nikon but I know the Canon RAW format I use opens in Photoshop and allows lossless editing of the file prior to converting to jpeg. Does the Nikon software let you edit anything, like white balance, saturation, contrast, etc?

I have to disagree with you on the overcrowding concerns. I think just the opposite would happen with a streetcar going through that area. You would see more people using public transportation and walking rather than driving. The streetcar should help to alleviate all that congestion you're referring to. The fact that its already a heavily used pedestrian area is actually really good for the streetcar. I don't think it would be wise for it to turn an immediate right on McMillan once its up the hill, instead it would be better for it to go straight and then turn left on Calhoun and loop back around on clifton towards McMillan again and then back down the hill from there. That's the route the original streetcar system followed I believe and it obviously worked well considering all the dense development that built up around those streets. Plus, you'd have the added benefit of easy expansion to Good Samaritan and the Ludlow district. And, you'd be able to incorporate it into an Uptown circulator that follows McMillan towards Mt. Auburn and loops back to Calhoun past Old St. George and the Uptown Commons area etc... The majority of cars going through that area are en-route to or from I-71. Anytime between 3 and 7, the entire length of McMillan from Clifton to 71 is over capacity. The streetcar isn’t going to alleviate any of that, because the people driving through there are going to the suburbs, not downtown. Unless another route from uptown to 71 is built, nothing is going to alleviate any of the congestion that exists there. an MLK interchange has been in the works for awhile, but there’s no way it could be ready by the time the streetcar is being built. There would be an overlap of extreme congestion that could potentially hurt the streetcar. Imagine sitting on it stuck in traffic for 15 minutes, which happens from time to time on McMillan.

I actually ran into him at a TJ Max in Queens this weekend.

The West Clifton route is good in that it would better serve the parts of UC’s campus that are the most used. The side effect, of course, would be overcrowding. The Clifton/Calhoun/McMillan/West Clifton intersections are already bottlenecks, and the businesses there are always bustling with students before/between/after classes and at the bars at night. Running a streetcar through there would actually make it overcrowded. Plus, the turn at the top of W. Clifton seems impossible. I’ve seen busses get stuck trying to make it, and within 30 seconds there’s total havoc with cars and pedestrians piling up everywhere… The MLK interchange would have to be built before running a streetcar on Calhoun/McMillan would work. There’s already too much traffic on those streets because it’s the only access point to I-71 from uptown, even though they are neighborhood streets and MLK is an 8 lane, high speed thoroughfare. The articles don't really touch on that aspect, but as someone who constantly walks and drives through that area, and frequents half a dozen of the stores, it's the first thing that comes to my mind.

Did you take it in RAW format or just JPEG? If it's in RAW, you could add a bit of fill light while simultaneously bumping up the contrast. I wouldn't call it too dark as is, though.

These are good points. Personally, I feel like levy's pass a lot in urban areas with a high percentage of renters because the cost of a property tax hike isn't directly passed down to the renters. If there's a $300 per $100,000 home property tax hike, the landlord will face the effects of it, while most renters won't care because they already have a lease, and figure the lease will go up the next year, anyways.

One day unlimited cards are $8.25, or if you load it with money each ride is $2.25. You’ll probably take more than 4 rides per day, so I would suggest you each buy three one day unlimited cards. I’ve had busy days when I’ve taken the subway 8 times. There are machines in every stop, and they’re pretty easy to use. They take credit/debit cards and cash. As for beer bars, there are a few in the East Village/LES that I frequent. My favorite is called Burp Castle, it’s small, quiet, has a decent crowd, but is laid back and tame – you can actually have a conversation without music blasting. If the place gets too loud, the tradition is for everyone to start “shushing.” A few blocks away is a placed called Key Bar, it’s a little bit rowdier and more crowded but has buy one get one free happy hours! Burp Castle is a few doors down from McSorleys, which was recommended a few posts up.

I've been living back and forth between NYC and Cincinnati for the past 4 years, half of my time in each one. I have had lots of friends come visit with really similar questions. From my experience, the Statue of Liberty is overrated unless you get tickets early enough to go inside and up to the top (buy online, months in advance!). If you can’t get the tickets to go up, skip it. You can stop by Ground Zero, and walk a few blocks down to Battery Park and see it from there. The Skyscraper Museum is also right between the WTC site and Battery Park. You could add a Canal St. visit to the trip, and see all you need to see “downtown,” in half a day. I suggest going to Top of the Rock instead of the ESB. It’s more of an open observation deck, the view is prettier, and the experience is a lot smoother, in general. As for restaraunts and bars, check online at Yelp. It’s easy to search for exactly what you’re looking for there, be it a specific neighborhood or type of food. As for ethnic food, I suggest you go to Queens. The best Thai food I’ve ever had is a place called SriPraPhai in Woodside. If you’re feeling really crazy, head a little deeper into Queens to Flushing, and you’ll feel like you’re on the other side of the planet - awesome ethnic food and atmosphere. Anyways, my plug is for Queens in general, especially Astoria or Flushing. There are also some cheaper hotels in Long Island City, just across the East River from midtown (2 minute subway ride away). The neighborhood isn’t so great, but the location is. It’s also on the way between LGA and Manhattan. As for bars, if you’re a beer lover I can help. I generally spend my time at beer bars or dive bars, I’m not sure if that’s what you’re looking for while you’re visiting!

That's because county schools would mean losing local control of schools to a larger form of government. The most well run schools are usually medium to medium-large in size. The biggest schools are usually horribly inefficient, and the smallest schools lack a lot of resources and oppurtunities. Some places could use county schools (rural counties, for example), but not everywhere. Townships are smaller forms of government than most cities, and some would say they are a more efficient model. Again, why would a proponent of smaller government want a larger sewer/water district? Most of these are run pretty efficiently as they currently exist, and making them larger would just lose localized control. There's a thread about gravel roads on UO somewhere, it's a pretty good idea as road maintenance cost continues to escalate.

What the license does is make it possibly to take the cyclists that are giving the rest of the community a bad name off the road, just as the worst drivers lose their licenses. This would help curb the generalization you are implying I made about all cyclists breaking laws. There’s a difference between rolling through an empty country street with clear site lines, and buzzing through a city intersection full of pedestrians. It’s not a difference you can write into law, exactly, but it’s a difference that can be enforced. It might be difficult to stop and start, but it’s also very difficult to drive, and even difficult to walk in certain places in a city. I’m particularly talking about urban areas, as that’s really the only place I’ve run into any of these problems. Anecdotally, my run-ins with cyclists have been while I was in a cross walk, with a walk signal, and the cyclists was attempting to skip the red light by utilizing the crosswalk. It is a fairly regular occurrence on my typical walk to work, and happens a few times per week. Again, it all comes back to either ignorance of the law, or disregard of it because of the lack of enforcement. My only suggestion is better enforcement and licensing/registration if bikes are ever to be taken as seriously as cars as a mode of transportation. Also, I beg to differ that ridiculing someone for biker shorts is “ignorant.” I know very well what purpose it serves, that doesn’t change the fact that it looks silly. Rude? Yes. Ignorant? No. I have no problem being labeled rude from time to time!

Maybe we should license pedestrians! ;-) I think my point is being missed. I didn’t mean to imply auto registrations and gas tax pay for roads in entirety, the points is registering a vehicle and paying gas taxes amount to a nominal fee, a fee that you must pay in order to use roads. Obviously it’s not a self sufficient system at all. It’s a slippery slope because it’d be silly for everyone to register their 5 year olds bicycle, but delivery guys and Lance Armstrong wannabees whizzing around at high speeds pose a threat and often times have total disregard for traffic laws. There should be some type of registration and license, if a bike is going to be viewed as a vehicle and not a toy (ie. a kids bike is a toy, but the other examples are definitely vehicles). In Ohio bikes have to obey traffic laws on the road, why not have a license plate and license to operate as well?

he was charged with ... operating a bike on the road. What??? That city's insurance rates will go up. They should fire that cop. Plenty more people can take his job. Well that brings up an interesting point altogether – licensing of not only bikes, but also cyclists. Afterall, gas taxes, license fees, and automobile registration fees pay for the bulk of road maintenance, should bikes get a free pass? Bike lanes are far from cheep to install and maintain. If these guys were in fact not keeping speed, prohibiting traffic flow, and violating traffic laws then they did deserve to get stopped and ticketed. It’s much more dangerous to be cycling on a busy road than it is to be driving; I think there should be a license of some sort before someone is allowed to cycle in traffic on a road. Currently, there’s a sort of lawlessness surrounding cycling, and it’s at the root of a lot of pedestrian-cyclist and motorist-cyclist confrontations. Cyclists have to know the rules; shouldn’t they take a test to prove it? I almost get mowed down by rouge cyclists on a weekly basis. It’s becoming a big problem in New York City, and I’m sure it will spread as ridership increases everywhere. The NYPD has just now started ticketing cyclists, but without some type of registration of bikes and bikers, it probably won’t be as effective as it should be.

I think it's only the one, as far as I can tell. The article mentions that the Cincinnati Public Library will have a full resolution version up sometime within a year, hopefully soon! The article goes on to say that the image is crisp and clear at 30x zoom, so keep that in mind while you're looking into windows in the 10x zoom!

1848 Daguerreotypes Bring Middle America's Past to Life http://www.wired.com/magazine/2010/07/ff_daguerrotype_panorama/ n 1848, Charles Fontayne and William Porter produced one of the most famous photographs in the history of the medium — a panorama spanning some 2 miles of Cincinnati waterfront. They did it with eight 6.5- by 8.5-inch daguerreotype plates, a then-new technology that in skilled hands displays mind-blowing resolution. ---------------- Here's just one piece, click for the rest and some higher-resolutions! edited 08/27/2010 to correct spelling of "equivalent" in title

^They just need Lucy Blue's type hours, and also Lucy Blue's needs to be cheaper. I've had better $1 slices on the street in New York. Moving back and forth between NYC and Cincy constantly, I have to spend half the year missing good, cheap pizza, and half the year missing Skyline. It's really a shame I can't find both in the same city!

Yeah, I saw that earlier today and laughed. The point went completely by the guys head, but he did do a hell of a job building up and tearing down straw men.

Interesting conclusion, but it's based completely on developing countries - namely China and India. Most American cities, for example, have been shrinking pretty quickly post-industrial revolution. What's to say once countries like China and India modernize, their cities won’t suffer the exact same fate? Even the exact example given, the poor family selling the farm and moving to the city.. it parallels depression era America to a tee. In 30 years that guys kids are moving to the suburbs, and that's almost a guarantee. Cities are for some people, but they aren’t for everyone, and I don’t think that’s ever going to change. A completely urbanized world is often the setting for dystopian ideas.

Actually, lots of people are saying that: http://action.afa.net/Blogs/BlogPost.aspx?id=2147497353 http://www.zeenews.com/news646019.html just two examples That's not "lots" and they are on the fringe. People cite sources like that to make the people who have legitimate concerns look bad. Banning all mosques across the entire country is a much, much different idea than opposing the ground zero area mosque. In fact, it's not even remotely the same thing.